The fall from fashion of vampire romance and fantasy in favour of more gritty reads is nowhere more evident than in the teen shortlist for the Waterstones children's books prize.

Divided for the first time into three age categories – picture books, 5-12 and teens – the prize's young adult section features titles covering a range of hard-hitting issues from class and date rape to terrorism and refugees.

Annabel Pitcher's debut novel My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece, which was longlisted for the Guardian children's fiction prize, focuses on 10-year-old Jamie Matthews and his family as they try to make a new start following a family tragedy. Phil Earle's Being Billy, meanwhile, features Bill Finn who has spent eight years living in a care home after being given up by his mother. You Against Me, Jenny Downham's follow up to her tear jerker Before I Die, tackles teenage love across the class divide against the backdrop of a sexual assault court case, while debut novel Shades of Grey by Ruta Sepetys looks back to 1941 and a 15-year-old girl who is deported to Siberia by the Societ secret police. The teen list is completed with a dystopia, Divergent by Veronica Roth and a road trip romance, Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson.

According to Sarah Clarke, Waterstones children's buying manager, the teen shortlist "demonstrates how young people today are not afraid to talk about serious subjects, in some cases, more so than adults."

In the 5-12 category, some celebrity stardust has been scattered by the presence of Mackenzie Crook. The star of The Office TV series and the Pirates of the Caribbean films is in the running with The Windvale Sprites, his first novel, which he has also illustrated. It tells the story of a boy who sets out to discover whether fairies really exist. Crook's up against last year's winner of the Roald Dahl funny prize, Liz Pichon's diary-based The Brilliant World of Tom Gates. Also in the running is a well-regarded debut novel, Sky Hawk by Gill Lewis, a Richard and Judy read, Muncle Trogg by Janet Foxley, a tale of a 12-year-old geek starting a new life, Milo and the Restart Button by Alan Silberberg, and a dog story, Claude in the City by Alex T Smith.

In the picture book category, animals feature strongly. There is a tale of a bear looking for his hat, an irrepressible dog, a bird-hippo fancy dress party, the adventures of a lost Little Owl, and a wolf with a identity issues. The exception to the animal magic is The Pirates Next Door, by Jonny Duddle, about the Jolley-Rogers family.

The prize is voted for by booksellers and the three category winners will be pitted against each other to produce an overall winner who will win £3,000 on top of the £2,000 category prize. All the winners will be announced at a ceremony at Waterstones Piccadilly on Wednesday 28 March.